Fast Retailing, which is worth a staggering $36 billion, approached J. Crew about purchasing the company late last month.

J. Crew was seeking as much as $5 billion in the deal, the Journal reported at the time, citing sources close to the deal.

But the talks ended shortly after they became public, according to the Journal's sources.

"While it isn't clear exactly why the talks broke down, some of the people said the fact that they became public played a role," the Journal's Mike Spector reports.

Fast Retailing is the parent company of Uniqlo, which has exploded in the past decade, becoming Asia's biggest clothing retailer. The company also owns clothing brands Theory, J Brand, Comptoir Des Cotonniers and National Standard.